Door assembly



Dec. 10, 1963 s. M. WARGO 3,113,649

DOORASSEMBLY Filed May 25, 1962 SrEv /W $1 2260 E65 Arm NE ys Filed May23, 1962, Ser. No; 197,033 1 Claim. Cl. 18946) The present inventionrelates to partition structures of the type used mainly in toilet,shower and dressing rooms and more particularly to the doors thereof andto their hinges;

One of the principal objects of the invention is the provision of anovel and improved swinging door assembly which is simple to manufactureand assemble.

Another of the principal objects of the invention is the provision of anovel and improved hinge for swinging doors which is simple inconstruction, easy to install and adjust, and reliable in operation.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a novel andimproved gravity hinge for swinging doors which provides automaticreturn of the door to its initial position and which is simple inconstruction, easy to install and adjust and reliable in operation.

The invention resides incertain constructions and combinations andarrangements of parts, and further objects and advantages of theinvention will be apparent to those skilled in the art to which itrelates from the following description of the preferred embodimentdescribed with reference to the attached drawing forming a part of thisspecification and in which:-

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of a partition structureincluding a door embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevation with parts brokenaway and insection of the lower hinge assembly shown in FIG. 1;

' FIG. 3 is a section taken along line 33 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a side elevation of the upper cam or follower member of thehinge assembly shown in FIG. 2; and

FIG. 5' is a plan of the cam follower member shown in FIG. 4.

The invention is particularly applicable to space di viders' orpartition structures of the type used in toilet, shower and dressingrooms and which include or are provided with swinging doors whichautomatically return to their closed position by gravity upon beingreleased in an open or partly open position. The invention accordinglyis herein shown and described as embodied in such a structure comprisinga stationary partition member, designated generally as A, to which aswinging door B is connected by upper and lower hinge assemblies,designated generally by the reference characters C and D.

The partition structure A and the door B may be of any suit-ableconstruction. The particular partition and door structure shown issimilar to that shown in United States patent to G. W. Hult, No.2,776,029, issued January 1, 1957, and is not herein shown and describedin detail. The door B comprises front and rear metal panel members 10,11 having overlapping interlocking marginal edges and is provided withupper and lower cutout portions 12, 13 on the side of the door adjacentto the partition structure A. The cutout recess 12, which is spacedbelow the top of the door, is provided for the reception part of theupper hinge assembly C and the other cutout recess 13, in the lowercorner of the door, for the reception of parts of the lower hingeassembly D.

The upper cutout portion 12 of the door B has a U-shaped bracket '16secured therein provided with a pintle rod 17 which forms a part of theupper or top hinge assembly C. The upper hinge assembly C is com- Patent0 Patented Dec. 10, 1963 2 pleted' by a bracket 18 secured to thepartition structure A by suitable fasteners and having a projecting arm20 extendinginto the aperture in the bracket 16; The arm 20 has anopening therethrough for the reception of the 17 and is considerablynarrower than in a similar manner by suitable fasteners. The bracket 24'has a projecting armor flange 26'- formed' integral therewithandextending underneath the downwardly facing aperture in the lower nearcorner of the door formed by' the cutout 13. In the present instance thebottom edge of the bracket 2'4 and arm 26 is substantially in alignmentwith the lower or bottom edge of the door B when the door is closed.

The arm 26 of the bracket 24 is provided with an opening therein withinwhich an upwardly projecting pintle pin or rod 27 is supported. As shownin the drawings, the lower end 28 of the pintle rod 27 is of reduceddiameter forming a shoulder which engages the upper side of the arm 26,with a nut 30 at the lower side of the arm 26 for securing the pintlerod 27 to the arm 26 of the bracket 24. The lower pintle pin or rodassembly includes in addition to the pintle pin of rod 27, a to thepintle rod 27 above upwardly facing cam face or pintle rod 27, the upperend of which projects upwardly above the cam surface 32'. The lower cammember 31, as shown, is cylindrical and the cam surface 32 is similar tothat shown in British patent to David Smith, No. 17,929 of 1894. Anysuitable cam surface, however, may be employed, for example, surfacessuch as those shown in United States patents to Neal, No. 1,330,647, andKuehl, No. 2,904,824.

The remainder of the lower hingeassembly D is carried by the door B andcomprises a discrete upper cam member or cam follower member 35 havingan opening 36 therethrough' to receive the pintle pin or rod 27. Theupper cam member or follower 35 has a downwardly facing cam face orsurface 37 which is complementary or conjugate to the cam surface 32 onthe lower cam member 31, and engages and cooperates with the latter tosupport the door and cause the same to automatically swing to closedposition when released in an open or partly open position.

The upper cam member or follower 35 an outwardly extending flangeportion 38 adjacent to its upper end having a downwardly extendingboss-like portion 40 on its underside projecting below the cam surface37, and an upwardly projecting boss 41., the lower portion 42 of whichis noncircular.

The upper cam member or follower 35 abuts against the underside of theweb of a channel member 45, within the lower corner of the door, andwelded or otherwise fixedly secured to the rear and front panelsthereof. The web of the channel member 45 forms an abutment in theaperture in the lower left-hand corner of the door B, as viewed in thedrawings, spaced above the lower opening thereof and has a noncircularaperture therein through which the boss 31 projects with the noncircularportion 42 thereof in the aperture. The width of the cam follower 35 isthe same or substantially the same as that of the channel in the member45 which helps to hold the follower member 35 in the door B and preventsrelative rotation between the follower 35 and the door. The openingformed by the cutout 13 is closed by the face surface 32 surrounding thealso comprises is threaded and is provided plate 46, which face plate issecured in position by a threaded fastener 47 projecting upwardlythrough a suitable opening in the face plate and an opening in the part49 of the upper cam member 35 and has threaded engagement in a circularaperture in the web of the channel member 45 spaced from the nonciroularaperture therein through which the boss 41, of the upper cam member 35,projects. The fastener '47, shown, is of the self-tapping type and formsits own thread in the web of the channel member 45.

The face plate or cover 46 has marginal portions of reduced thickness soas to be more easily fitted into the lower corner of the door and tobetter retain its desired aligned position therein. The edges of thefront and rear panels 10, 11 of the door abut the peripheral edges ofthe cover 46 and make a neat appearing assembly. The boss-like portion40 of the cam follower member 35 preferably extends downwardly intoengagement with the upper side of the cover 46 and the parts are allsecurely held together by the fastener 47, etc.

, The standing position of the door B may be adjusted by loosening thenut 39 on the threaded lower portion 28 of the pintle rod 27 androtating the rod so that the position of the cam surface 32 of cammember 31 secured to the rod 27 is changed with respect to arm 26 of thedoor support bracket 24. This arrangement permits the standing positionof the door to be adjusted simply and conveniently without removing thedoor from its hinges and without disassembling any portion thereof.

While the invention has been described as embodied in a door B formed ofspaced metal sheets it), 11, doors of other shapes and constructions maybe employed provided that the door contains a cavity therein to receivethe portion of the hinge assembly carried by the door. If a solid doormade of a material, such as, wood is employed, it may be advantageous toeliminate the bracket or channel member 45 and provide a cavity of ashape to receive the cam follower 35 and permit engagement of the screw47 to maintain the cover or face plate 46 and the cam follower in properalignment.

The employment of the particular cam follower structure of the inventionprovides a number of advantages heretofore unattainable. For example,the portion of the hinge assembly carried within the door cavitycomprises only the one part 35 which can be simply and quickly assembledin the door in contrast to the complicated structures heretoforeemployed. Furthermore, the cam follower not only has provision forreceiving the pintle rod but this same construction provides for properalignment of the cooperating cam surfaces and this is true even thoughthe cam follower is set back into the cavity in the lower edge of thedoor. The construction is in fact so simple that the fastener 47 mightpossibly be omitted if it was not required to hold the cover of faceplate 46 in position.

2 While the preferred form of the invention has been described inconsiderable detail, it will be apparent that the invention is notlimited to the construction shown nor the uses referred to, and it is myintention to cover all adaptations, modifications and changes which comewithin the practice of those skilled in the art to which the inventionrelates and the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

In a partition structure having a stationary support, a door connectedto the stationary support by an upper hinge and having a downwardlyfacing aperture in its lower corner adjacent to the stationary support,a member within the door having laterally. spaced circular andnoncircular vertically extending apertures therein located within thedoor above the opening of the aperture in the lower corner of the door,a bracket secured .to the stationary support and provided with an armprojecting underneath the lower corner of the door, a lower cam memberhaving an upwardly facing annular cam surface nonrotatably connected tothe arm of the bracket and projecting upwardly into the aperture in thedoor, and a pintle rod extending upwardly from the arm of the bracketthrough the center of the cam surface on the lower cam member, hingemeans carried by the door for cooperation with the lower cam membercomprising: a discrete upper cam member located within the door andabutting the member within the door having the circular and noncircularapertures therein, said upper cam member having a downwardly facing camsurface in engagement with the upwardly facing cam surface on the lowercam member and having a portion thereof extending downwardly beyond saiddownwardly facing cam surface,

an upwardlyextending noncircular boss on said upper,

cam member projecting into and nonrotatably engaged within thenoncircular aperture in the member within the door having the laterallyspaced circular and noncircul-ar apertures therein, said upper cammember having two apertures therethrough the first located centrally ofsaid downwardly facing cam surface thereof and said upwardly extendingnoncircular boss thereof for the reception of the upper portion of saidpintle rod and the second parallel with the first and extending throughthe portion of said upper cam member extending downwardly beyond saiddownwardly facing cam surface, a platelike member closing the aperturein the door and engaging the lower end of said portion of said upper cammember extending downwardly beyond said downwardly facing cam surface,and a fastener extending parallel with the pintle rod through saidplate-like member and through said second aperture in said lower cammember and threaded into the circular aperture in the member within thedoor.

2,904,824 Kuehl Sept. 22, 1959 Jones et a1. May 29, 1956

